It is well known to employ endoprostheses for the treatment of diseases of various body vessels. Intraluminal devices of this type are commonly referred to as stents. These devices are typically intraluminally implanted by use of a catheter into various body organs such as the vascular system, the bile tract and the urogenital tract. Many of the stents are radially compressible and expandable so that they may be easily inserted through the lumen in a collapsed or unexpanded state. Some stent designs are generally flexible so they can be easily maneuvered through the various body vessels for deployment. Once in position, the stent may be deployed by allowing the stent to expand to its uncompressed state or by expanding the stent by use of a catheter balloon.
As stents are normally employed to hold open an otherwise blocked, constricted or occluded lumen; a stent must exhibit a relatively high degree of radial or hoop strength in its expanded state. The need for such high strength stents is especially seen in stents used in the urogenital or bile tracts where disease or growth adjacent the lumen may exert an external compressive force thereon which would tend to close the lumen.
One particular form of stent currently being used is a wire stent. Stents of this type are formed by single or multiple strands of wire which may be formed into a shape such as a mesh coil, helix or the like which is flexible and readily expandable. The spaces between the coiled wire permit such flexibility and expansion. However, in certain situations, such as when the stent is employed in the urogenital or bile tract, it is also desirable to inhibit tissue ingrowth through the stent. Such ingrowth through the stent could have a tendency to reclose or occlude the open lumen. The open spaces between the wires forming the stent, while facilitating flexibility and expansion, have a tendency to allow such undesirable tissue ingrowth.
Attempts have been made to provide a stent which has less open space and more solid wire. U.S. Pat. No. 5,133,732 shows a wire stent where the wire forming the stent is overlapped during formation to provide less open space. However such overlapping wire increases the diameter of the stent and has a tendency to reduce flexibility and make implantation more difficult. It is therefore desirable to provide a wire stent which exhibits high compressive strength and full flexibility without allowing extensive ingrowth therethrough.